Brilliant idea...so the driver, instead of shifting 4 times during acceleration, would keep one hand on a control lever ALL the time to adjust the belt position while watching the tach, right?
Why not call GM with this idea? They're so stupid, they'd buy anything!
The aircraft industry has been that stupid since the late 30s. See "constant speed propeller".
CSPs were/are hardly the same thing. Prop speed is a constant; a road vehicle's load and speed changes almost infinitely.
"Bret Ludwig" wrote
Like most people here, I've killfiled this Desert Bob creep, but this exchange highlights just how practical a manual-only CVT might be. In fact they do exist. There are several CVT autosticks for sale, including top-level Calibers and Compasses. They use a 6 -speed fixed detent system (more in some systems), so they shift sequentially like paddle-shifts in expensive supercars. I suppose one could also allow the driver to program in the position and number of preset "gears".
Another possibility I've seen mentioned is more detents (say 15 or more) but set it up so that the driver can slide a shifter over more than one click, thereby determining how big a gap he wants between the "gears".
Not really- prop speed is under PILOT CONTROL, not truly "constant". Most airplanes with "constant speed" propellors have two power levers instead of just a throttle- one lever is the prop control, which sets RPM. The other lever is the throttle. The pilot can set the prop speed to where he wants it and independently control engine torque with the throttle, and also increase prop speed (for more power, or actually more "thrust") or decrease it (for more fuel efficiency) at will. What the pilot does NOT control directly is the actual pitch of the prop blades- the prop governor controls that based on the selected prop speed, the throttle (torque applied to the prop) and also airplane speed (the speed of the air hitting the prop affects where the pitch has to be set to maintain a constant RPM.
I also was thinking that a CVT with a manual control lever would be almost exactly like flying an airplane with prop control. Really cool (for 5 minutes) then a PITA after that :-)
First I am amassed at the wealth of information here about CVT's, I had no idea so many of them were used on cars back then.
My only 2 cents: I belive the Saturn Vue AWD V6 came with a CVT
MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.